Basket Case
by MsRainey
Summary: Stuck with Cloud in a Deepground cave? Could her birthday get any worse? Oh wait... yes, it could.


Disclaimer: I don't own FFVII

A/N: Probably OOC, but I tried my best. Yuffie is pretty bipolar here, so beware. However, I think she has layers, and judging by her personality, I would guess there's some serious craziness going on it that skull of hers. I really wanted some positive interaction between C/Y because I don't really see to much of it and I love them both. Not romantically of course, but maybe in a sibling fighting type of way. Anyhoo, here you all are. Enjoy!

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"Of all the people, I had to be stuck with you!"

To say Yuffie was upset was an understatement. Reeve- _that bastard_- had decided it best to clear out all of the secret bases Deepground had been hiding in. Not that they were smart enough to have many, Yuffie thought with pursed lips. It wasn't so much the job she was upset about, but they'd scheduled it the day before her birthday! Weren't they supposed to throwing her some lavish surprise party? And _furthermore_, thanks to some intruder traps that had been cleverly set up, she was stuck with the one person she absolutely did _not _want to be stuck with in this damned cave/hideout/whatever!

"It's not like I'm jumping for joy, either."

His tone was flat and she stuck her tongue out at him, not receiving a response because he was already dialing away on his cell, ignoring her. "Damn. No signal."

Yuffie put her hands on her hips and looked around the hallow cave. There wasn't much light other than Cloud's phone and the sunbeams peaking through the rocks above them. "Well, no worries. At the most, I say we're stuck here for the night, but that's not so bad, is it Chocobo-head? After all, who better to be stuck with than me?"

She folded her arms in aggravation as Cloud pinched the bridge of his nose. Sheesh, it wasn't as if it were the worst thing to endure. "You really should lighten up." She told him, a glint of metal catching her eye. "Oh look, a desk!" She exclaimed, opening the drawers to find access to information, more light and maybe some materia.

Cloud was at her side in an instant and then quietly moved past her, crouching down to find an oil lamp on the ground next to it. "Too bad someone took my fire materia or we'd be able to actually see come nightfall."

"Like you would have used it!" She defended herself, stomping her foot at his accusatory stare and pointing her finger at him. "Besides, you were the one that told me to leave my bag on the airship!"

Cloud sighed and stared at the rocks above, a few beams of light splaying across his features. "This is going to be a long night."

FFVIIFFVII

Cloud had managed to find a pit of firewood already assembled, and with no trouble, was able to start a small fire. This was the beginning of the most boring night she'd come to endure.

After a few hours of playing some pointless game on her PHS, resigning to put it away after her battery died, she'd tried continuously to get Cloud to talk, but he wouldn't budge; only acknowledging her questions with grunts and nods. How did Tifa put up with that? Eventually, she fell asleep, but dark dreams and restlessness managed to keep her awake far longer than she'd pleased.

Yuffie did not like the silence one bit and was actually starting to get a headache by it. Unlike her, lying on the ground with her knees tucked up, Cloud was sitting directly across from her, his eyes closed and his arms leant against his propped knees. Directing her line of vision to the dwindling fire, Yuffie's thoughts turned dim as she realized it was probably past midnight_... Happy birthday to me_, she thought sourly.

"Cloud?" She asked, her voice a little scratchy, unaccustomed to being unused for such a period of time. Her eyes flickered to his frame but his posture was unmoving. She sighed and looked up through the cracks in the rocks, barely making out the starry night sky. "20." She mumbled to herself as she reached up and traced the cracks with her finger. "What a boring age you happen to have now, Yuffie."

"I thought you were 19." The low voice came from across from her. She snapped her head to see bright mako eyes looking at her curiously. Bringing her hand down to her stomach, she frowned at Cloud's apparent lack of knowledge on this matter.

"If your phone states it's the 20th, then I am officially 20 now." She replied a bit clipped, managing to hold back a childish huff of displease. She locked eyes with him and smirked. "Born at exactly 12:01. Pretty cool, huh?"

With a nod, he looked at the fire and stared into it, causing the ninja to frown. "Well?" She prompted, leaning up on her forearm to face him fully. He looked at her in question and her mouth dropped open at his rudeness. "Aren't you at least going to wish me happy birthday?"

"What's happy about it?" He countered, his tone even, but not unkind. "You're stuck in a cave. With me, no less."

She grimaced and settled back onto her back, resuming her star gaze. "Well, you've got a point there."

For next long period of time, Yuffie's mind drifted to her birth, which in turn caused her to think about her mother. It didn't surprise her really. She found that anything could trigger her thoughts toward her mother. What would she look like? What would their relationship have been like? Would… would she be proud of the woman she'd become? Biting her lip, Yuffie thought to Godo. He certainly had his moments of affection toward her, but that was it. Even Barret- of all people!- constantly doted on Marlene. And that wasn't even his biological daughter!

Yuffie realized the direction of her thoughts and grit her teeth. She should not be thinking these things. Today was her birthday and she was going to be happy, damnit! And if that entailed being stuck with Cloud in this crappy cave, she'd make it kickass!

Though… watching the stars… she wondered if her mother could see her. Gods, was she proud? That's all she really wanted to know. _Do I make you proud? _Her eyes blinked repeatedly to get rid of the sting, but it was useless.

"I wouldn't exactly say that…" Came an awkward response. Yuffie looked at Cloud confused before blushing at the realization she'd asked her question out loud.

"It wasn't meant for you!" Yuffie snapped, angry with how her voice cracked. In both anger and embarrassment, with the trail of her thoughts and the slip of them, she rolled over and curled herself in a ball. Usually she loved being center of attention, but right now she wanted nothing more than to be invisible. What the hell kind of mush was her brain spewing anyway? Her mother was dead, plain and simple. Godo was her father, plain and simple. Her mother would not come back and Godo would not ever bestow her the type of care and love she'd secretly longed for.

plain. and. simple.

"Yuffie," She heard Cloud say quietly, recognizing the awkwardness in his tone.

She didn't answer him but simply stared at the wall in front of her with a frown. "What was your mother like, Cloud?" She asked after a few minutes of silence.

The answer wasn't immediate, and she'd wonder if she'd gone too personal. She didn't regret her question, though. As she'd began to drift into sleep, however, she heard the soft murmur of his voice.

"My mother… she was… short."

Yuffie scrunched her nose and rolled over giving the still awkward Cloud a look. "Short?"

He nodded, eyes focused on his hands. "She was a horrible baker, but she made the best meals… She…" There was a stumble in his words, and for the first time in a while, Yuffie didn't feel the need to push and be impatient. Fortunately, for her curiosity, he continued. "She was vibrant… liked to tease me… but-"

She noticed the frown on his face and noticed he was struggling with something. He shook his head and tucked his chin before saying so lowly that she had to strain to hear it, "I don't remember much else."

It was a tense silence and the young shinobi wondered if she should have asked the question in the first place. With a small voice, she looked at him and tucked her hands under her cheek. "I imagine my mom would have been like that. You know, vibrant and stuff. I don't think she'd be a good cook though, cause I'm horrible at it!"

He didn't respond and she felt a bit guilty. "Thank you, Cloud."

The blond haired warrior grunted and she was satisfied with the response.

FFVIIFFVII

"Yuffie, wake up."

The young woman threw her hand at whatever was trying to wake her up. "Goway." She slurred. Satisfied with no response, she sighed only to snap up with a shriek when ice water collided with her drowsy form. Above her, the smirk of a certain Turkey had her glaring daggers. "You asshole!"

With a pounce, she knocked the bucket out of Reno's hands and wrestled him to the floor. "Why I outta- Eep!"

"Enough messin' around, brat!" With a firm grip on her shirt, Barret had managed to hoist her off the red headed Turk all the while, ignoring her loud protests. "We gotta get back to headquarters."

With a yank, a kick, and a huff, she was free. A quick glance around made her notice the lack of a certain chocobo-head. "Where's Cloud?"

"Already on the chopper." Reno replied as they walked out of the cave, stepping over demolished rubble. "You just didn't wanna wake up."

"Why are you here anyway?" Yuffie snapped as she climbed into the helicopter.

"Reeve's orders." He shrugged, sitting himself comfortable at the wheel. "By the way, I'm not complainin' about the view, but are you cold?"

Yuffie immediately looked down and flushed red, grabbing Reno's suit jacket as he handed it to her. She ignored his snickers, but smiled in triumph when they halted as she'd smacked his head.

She sat next to Cloud as they took off, and tuned out Barret's rambling on about one thing or another. No one had yet to wish her happy birthday and she silently pouted to herself.

"-n Godo's announcement."

"Huh?" She snapped to reality as Barret had mentioned her father's name. He looked at her strangely before shaking his head. "I said it must be excitin' for you to hear 'bout Godo's announcement."

Yuffie frowned in absolute confusion, not noticing Cloud's glances. "What announcement?"

"About your old man's new wife te be, what else?" He answered gruffly. As her eyes widened and her jaw dropped, he realized the young ninja had no knowledge of what he was talking about, making him severely uncomfortable.

"What?" She shrieked, jumping to her feet only to hit her head on the ceiling. "Ow!"

"Uh…" Yuffie was especially glad he shut up cause all she could think about was how Godo didn't tell her and how this was quickly becoming the worst birthday ever! She felt betrayed and- and- seriously, what the _fuck _was he thinking! He was too old for that shit! What about her mother! Was she just a memory to him now? Gods, she wanted to punch him.

"Hey," She felt a hand on her shoulder and instantly snapped her vision to Cloud's. He looked uncomfortably concerned and she hated how she actually _was _comforted. Leviathan, get a grip! She thought, angrily rubbing her eyes.

"I'm fine." She said, trying to shrug him off. He relented, sighing, causing her to instantly feel guilty. Was she pmsing or something? Had she suddenly become bipolar? What was with her damned emotions today!

As they landed in front of Seventh Heaven, Yuffie debated on asking if she could stay for awhile. She really didn't want to go to Wutai right now...

Cloud must have somehow sensed her hesitation, because he gestured with his head to follow him.

After kicking Reno in the shin, she followed Cloud onto the steps of the bar. He didn't open the door, but instead turned toward her. With a hand on the curve of her neck, Cloud searched her eyes. "She is proud of you... How could she not be?"

Yuffie looked down and kicked a pebble with her shoe. "You think so?"

Cloud nodded with smiling eyes. He opened the door before glancing over his shoulder. "Happy Birthday, Yuffie."

With a curve of her lips, she realized it just might be.

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Good? Bad? Hope you enjoyed! Review, please!


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